Blaze

by Suzanne Wright

  “I would only have removed him from your home if there was a chance he was a danger to himself or others,” Knox told her. “It would have been a temporary arrangement.”

  Delia looked up. “He wasn’t dangerous.”

  “Clearly you’re wrong,” said Levi. “He kidnapped your neighbor.”

  She averted her eyes. “I know. But he was doing better. Really.” Her brow furrowed. “Then he became a little depressed. I just thought it was a side-effect of the medication. I didn’t realize until this morning that he hasn’t been taking his pills lately.”

  Delia looked at a framed picture on the wall of her and a lean, barrel-chested male with gentle blue eyes and hair the same salt-and-pepper shade as his wiry mustache. Knox had told Harper a little about him during the drive here. Crow was a surgeon who loved his job, did charity runs, donated money to human causes, and helped the other demons within the lair who had come close to turning rogue.

  Knox inhaled deeply. “What happened here earlier?”

  “I walked into the bedroom to find him packing a suitcase,” said Delia. “He said he had to leave. That he had a mission to complete.”

  “Mission?” echoed Knox.

  Delia licked her lips. “See, Lawrence says he had a vision. A vision that you and Harper would eventually have a baby… and that the baby would be whatever you are and it would destroy us all.”

  Harper’s stomach rolled and cold fingers scuttled down her spine. Everyone exchanged uneasy looks, except for her mate. Knox just stared back at Delia calmly, as if the woman hadn’t just dropped a verbal bomb.

  “So he’s having paranoid delusions again,” said Knox.

  “Yes,” replied Delia. “He’s convinced that it’s his responsibility to save the world by killing you before the baby can be born. I tried to make him see that it was all in his head. He wouldn’t listen. He packed his things and was ready to leave, so I grabbed the car keys. He demanded I hand them over, but I refused. He yelled at me, angry that I wouldn’t believe him. Then he… he hit me, and then he started draining me.”

  Harper frowned. Draining? No one else seemed confused, so she figured it was related to some kind of demonic ability Crow had.

  “Carla must have heard us arguing,” Delia went on, “because she charged inside to see what was going on and then…”

  “And then?” prompted Knox.

  “He started ranting at Carla that she put all this in motion by giving birth to Harper.”

  Bray growled and Roan spat a curse.

  “He dragged her out of the house. I wanted to help her, but I was too weak to get up.”

  Confused that she’d been weak, Harper asked, “What is he?”

  “A psi-demon,” replied Knox.

  Well, that explained a lot. Crow’s breed fed from emotion like psychic vampires, draining them of energy. It also meant bad things for Carla.

  “He’ll kill her,” Roan snapped out. His eyes slammed on Harper, hard and scornful. She’d seen that look on Carla’s face in the past. Though he was tall like Bray, he looked a lot like Carla with his dark hair, brown almond-shaped eyes, high cheekbones, and golden skin “He’ll kill her, and it’ll be your fault.”

  Harper blinked. Her fault?

  Roan made a beeline for her, but Levi stepped in his way. “Hold on there,” he said, voice deadly. “You want to think hard before you try to harm Harper.”

  “It’s her fault,” Roan spat.

  “How?” rumbled Knox, tone lethal. “Harper didn’t take her. Harper didn’t cause Crow’s delusions. Harper doesn’t even know him, and she has minimal contact with your mother. So explain to me how this could possibly be her fault.”

  “There’s no saying he intends to kill your mom,” Bray told Roan. “If that was what he wanted, he could have done that right here.”

  “But if he’s hovering on the edge, it won’t take much to drive him to do it,” said Roan. Glaring at Harper, he stalked out of the house with Bray behind him. Kellen’s eyes met hers, conflicted. But then he looked away with a frown and followed his father and brother. Ouch.

  Knox put a supportive hand on Harper’s lower back as he spoke to Delia. “If Lawrence comes into contact with you, call me. Don’t try to lure him back here. Don’t agree to meet him anywhere. Call me and tell me where he is. He’s your partner and he cares for you, but he’s also not himself right now.”

  Delia nodded miserably. “If he contacts me, I’ll call you.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  The black, heavy-metal gates swung open, and Levi steered the Bentley along the lengthy, circular drive toward the expansive, luxurious mansion. Harper loved the place. The contemporary piece of architecture was as spectacular as the guy who owned it. It was the kind of house you saw in magazines about the rich and famous, but there was nothing pretentious about it. The mansion had charm and a warm elegance. One of her favorite features was the bulletproof, blue-tinted windows that gave it a really modern look.

  Ivy trailed along the high brick walls that framed the estate. Sprinklers were spraying the extensive lawn while landscapers were trimming the hedges that framed the security gatehouse. Levi dropped Harper and Knox off at the wide steps before heading to the garage that she knew stored several expensive cars.

  Before she and Knox had even reached the top step, a tall male with graying hair opened the door and gave them a polite smile. “Mr. Thorne, Miss Wallis, welcome home.”

  “Hey, Dan,” she said as she stepped into the marble foyer, where freshly cut flowers sat on a circular table.

  Knox threaded his fingers through hers. “Come on.”

  He didn’t lead her into the living area as she’d expected. Instead, he tugged her along the wide hallway and up the curved staircase. “You intend to have your wicked way with me already? We’ve only just walked through the door.”

  Mouth curving, he said, “That will come later.”

  He urged her into the lavish bedroom and along what she’d learned was rare, imported flooring. The room always seemed to smell of clean linen, Knox’s cologne, and fragrant oils. It was as lush as the rest of the house with its quality wooden furnishings, super-soft bedding, electronic shades, and balcony. Well, Harper didn’t really think “balcony” was the right word for what was more like a grand patio, complete with a small pool.

  He led her into the private steamy bathroom. Her jasmine-scented candles had been lit and a glass of wine was waiting near the large circular, black-granite bath. And she knew he’d sent Meg, the housekeeper, a telepathic request to run her a bath. He did stuff like that a lot; took care of her in whatever ways he could. Since Harper was a self-sufficient person who had mostly raised herself, she didn’t quite know what to do with that yet.

  “You need to get out of those damp clothes and warm your bones.” Knox kissed her. “I’ll be back soon. I have some work to do.” In truth, it was something that could wait, but Knox sensed she needed some time alone to assimilate everything. If he thought she’d talk to him, he’d ask her what was bothering her fascinating mind, but he’d quickly learned that his mate took time to think things through before she confided in anyone. “Relax and I’ll see you in a while.”

  Harper hugged him. “Thank you for this,” she said a little awkwardly, still finding it difficult to accept… well, anything from anyone. “And thank you for getting me.” Being alone was her default zone, but it couldn’t be easy for someone as pushy and hyper-protective as Knox to not be all up in her business while she was stressing.

  Hugging her just as tight, he pressed a light kiss to her neck. “I’ll always give you what you need.” She made him want to cosset her, spoil her, and surround her with whatever she wanted. Knox pulled back and squeezed her shoulders. “Enjoy.” He closed the bathroom door and left the bedroom, heading to his office.

  Knox, meet me in the living area, said Levi. You should see this.

  Changing directions, Knox made his way downstairs and into the spacious, high-ceiling room. Le
vi was sat on one of the beige half-moon sofas, fingers tapping his touch-screen cell phone. The spotlights in the walls and mahogany ceiling illuminated the reaper’s face; it was set into a mask of sheer exasperation.

  “What do I need to see?” Knox asked, sitting on the other sofa.

  Levi slid his cell phone across the coffee table positioned between them. “This.”

  Picking up the cell, Knox tapped the play button on the screen. What appeared to be outdoor CCTV footage coming from a house opposite Crow’s showed him frantically dragging a yelling, kicking, squirming Carla to a red Toyota Corolla. He smacked her head hard on the window, knocking her unconscious, and then shoved her in the trunk. Raking a shaking hand through his hair, Crow looked in all directions, as if expecting someone to pounce at him. He then slung a suitcase onto the rear passenger seat before hopping inside the car and driving off.

  As the footage ended, Knox swore under his breath. “His eyes are wild, but not black. He’s not rogue.”

  “Yet,” said Levi.

  “Carla sure put up a hell of a fight.” Just as Harper would have done, he thought.

  “I’ve never known Crow to be violent.”

  Rising, Knox moved to the fireplace, looking up at the painting hung there without really seeing it. “Don’t cancel his credit cards. Let him use them. They can help us track him.”

  “I’m not sure he will use them, no matter how desperate he is for money. He’s so paranoid right now it will actually help him hide.”

  “It will be hard to track him any other way, given he knows how we hunt.” In addition to being a surgeon, he’d been a member of the Force.

  “He has no other properties, so I’ve no idea where he might hide.”

  “He won’t go far,” said Knox, leaning against the fireplace. The mantel had once been bare. Now it was lined with Harper’s knickknacks from the years she’d spent traveling with her nomadic father. She’d added personal touches here and there to the room, giving it a homier feel. “He believes he must kill me. That means he’ll stay local.”

  “There are so many cheap motels and B & Bs in Vegas, it’s not even funny.”

  “Don’t send the entire Force hunting. We know there is definitely one place he’ll come: to wherever I am.” Knox used his heel to smooth a small kink out of the blue Persian rug. “He won’t try to penetrate this place when it would be so much easier for him to just walk right into one of my hotels.”

  “You think that’s what he’ll do?”

  “Our kind hide in plain sight, right?”

  Levi grabbed his phone and stood. “I’ll send a high number of the Force on patrol around the rough areas. The other half will monitor your hotels and casinos; they’ll watch out for any sign of him.”

  Knox nodded. “He’ll show himself soon enough.” They just had to hope that he didn’t kill Carla in the meantime.

  As the bathroom door opened, Harper opened her eyes to see Knox strolling inside, the top buttons of his white shirt open and his sleeves rolled up. Crouching beside the tub, he dipped his hand under the water and skimmed it over her leg. “You ready to talk about what’s bothering you most right now?” he asked.

  Not really. She turned off the Jacuzzi jets and sighed. “They all blame me.”

  Knox didn’t have to ask who she meant. When they’d left Delia’s house, Bray, Roan and Kellen were in their front yard, talking with their neighbors. Apart from Kellen – who had averted his gaze – each one of them looked at Harper like she herself had snatched Carla. “You know why.”

  She did know. “They feel guilty that they didn’t help her and they need someone to blame to make themselves feel better. I get it. It doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  He stroked her leg soothingly. “I don’t like it either.” Which was why he’d been sorely tempted to hurl a ball of hellfire at them. Instead, he’d settled for shooting them a warning glare that made them look away.

  “What do you think Crow will do?”

  “It’s hard to know for sure. No two near-rogues are the same. Generally, those on the edge suffer from delusions, paranoia, feelings of emptiness, and an irrepressible anger as their minds begin to splinter. Even then they’re a threat, but once they cross over the edge, they’re at their most dangerous. He already has a distorted notion of reality.”

  She sat up, biting her lower lip. “Knox… his vision —”

  “Was the product of a disturbed, delusional mind.” Knox cupped her cheek, glad to see the human’s teeth marks were gone. “Harper, any child we have cannot be what I am. My kind is born from the flames of hell, not from a womb.” But Crow didn’t know that because he had no idea what Knox was. “Demons don’t breed hybrids. That means any child we have will be a sphinx, just like you.”

  She took a long breath. “You’re right. I didn’t think of that.”

  Standing, Knox grabbed a towel from the radiator. “Up.” After she twisted her hair to ring out the water, he lifted her out of the tub and wrapped the soft towel around her. He patted her dry while she used another towel to rub her hair. “I want you to take every precaution when you’re out. People have used you to get to me before. You saw pictures of Crow at his house. You know what he looks like. If you see him, you call me. I know you’re strong. You could cause his soul agonizing pain, but he can conjure weapons, which means he doesn’t need to get close to you to hurt you.”

  “Does he have any other abilities?” Harper asked.

  “A few minor ones. And he can conjure balls of hellfire.”

  “Delightful.” It wasn’t a rare ability, but it was substantial. Harper couldn’t actually do it, though she could generate hellfire and infuse it into objects.

  Knox guided her into the bedroom, where he grabbed her comb and began gently working it through her hair. “Be smart and be aware.”

  “How will you find him?”

  “Half-rogue or full-rogue, they become worse stimulation seekers than before. They’re drawn to drugs, alcohol, and danger, so we monitor the hot spots. The problem is that he was a member of my Force; he knows how we hunt and knows where we’ll look.”

  “Do you think we should cancel the little shindig?”

  “Stop calling it that.” It was much more than a mere party; it was a noteworthy event that would take place in the Underground to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the day he created it.

  “But Crow could take that opportunity to get to you,” said Harper. “There would be so many people there, he could easily blend in with the crowd.”

  “The event takes place in six weeks. It’s likely we’ll have apprehended Crow by then.”

  “We can’t be sure of that.”

  Knox’s mouth curved. “Any excuse to get out of the celebration.”

  She sighed. “I don’t like parties, big or small.” She didn’t like fuss or being on display. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it was a private party. But no, it was to take place in the Underground on the “strip” and any demon could attend.

  “Many people have put a lot of effort into organizing it. Anyway, I saved you from the party your friends tried throwing for you to celebrate our mating.” He’d flew them both to Barcelona for the weekend on his private jet, wanting to celebrate their mating alone.

  She turned when he’d finished combing her hair. “You didn’t want that party any more than I did.”